These 5 CT Laws Can Change Your Life Jan. 1

Rich Scinto
Updated ·3 min read

CONNECTICUT — The new year brought with it a few new laws in Connecticut that could have life-changing consequences for many people across the state.

The regular legislative session was cut short this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but legislators did come back to handle some top priorities in special sessions.

Laws typically go into effect either at the time of passage or Jan. 1, July 1 or Oct. 1.

Diabetes

Pharmacists will be able to prescribe and dispense up to a 30-day supply of diabetes-related drugs and devices in certain emergency situations.

Connecticut joined a growing number of states across the country that capped the cost of insulin drugs under health insurance plans.

Out-of-pocket expenses for diabetes drugs will be limited on insurance plans, but they won’t go into effect until early 2022. There is a $25 limit for a 30-day supply of insulin and $100 cap for a 30-day supply of diabetes devices and diabetic ketoacidosis devices.

Utility reform

Some parts of Connecticut’s utility reform law go into effect Jan. 1. Some parts of the bill are already in effect and others won’t come until later in the year.

Electric utilities were required to submit response plans for hurricanes and other disasters, including information on how it responded to previous storm events. The state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority will establish minimum staffing requirements based on the projected severity of a storm.

The most noticeable consumer changes come in July when electric companies will need to credit customers $25 per day for outages lasting more than 96 consecutive hours.

Residential customers can be compensated $250 for food or medication that spoils due to outages lasting 96 hours or more.

Police reform

Some parts of Connecticut’s police reform law will go into effect Jan. 1. Police will have to prominently display their badge and name tag on the outermost layer of their uniform.

Police will have to submit to periodic behavioral health assessments at least once every five years beginning in 2021.

The Police Officer Standards and Training Council membership structure will change beginning on Jan. 1. It will reduce governor appointments from 17 to 11 and adds six legislative appointments. It also changes the makeup of appointments by adding in requirements for police to be from towns with different population levels.

POST will have to provide a report that includes information about recruitment, retention and promotion of minority police officers.

Paid FMLA deduction

Employees in Connecticut will see a new half a percent deduction effective Jan. 1 in their paychecks. The money will go to fund Connecticut’s Paid Family Leave program.

Funds will build up for a year before employees will be eligible for benefits in January 2022. It applies to all businesses with one or more employees. Self-employed and self-proprietors can opt in to the program if they wish.

Businesses can opt-out if they provide a comparable or better paid leave program than the state.

Employees are eligible for up to 12 weeks of paid leave if they meet qualifications. Some qualifying events include caring for a new child by birth, adoption or fostering, recovering from a serious health condition or taking care of a family member who is dealing with a serious medical condition.

Pension tax changes

Connecticut is moving toward eliminating the tax on pensions and annuity income. There is a 14 percent exemption for the 2019 tax year for singles making up to $75,000 and couples making $100,000. The amount will increase to 28 percent for the 2020 tax year and be eliminated by the 2025 tax year.

There will also be a 100 percent exemption on income taxes for Social Security benefits for singles with adjusted gross incomes up to $75,000 and up to $100,000 for couples in the 2019 tax year.

See also: CT Fines Its First Business $10K In Coronavirus Crackdown

This article originally appeared on the Across Connecticut Patch